Racy Cover Lands Author in Court over Theft of Image

It’s always a good thing when Gronkerotica makes national headlines since it serves to remind the rest of us that yes, there are steamy books available that offer fun word play on terms and phrases like “tight end” and “the receiver was wide open.” The fact that the title character (spoiler alert) doesn’t get to have sex in the erotica title he stars in is unimportant to this news.

Unfortunately, the national attention aimed at the erotica title A Gronking to Remember–yes, erotic short fiction starring the New England Patriots’ own Rob Gronkowski–isn’t such a great thing for its author, presumably pen named Lacey Noonan. As it turns out, the image of the adoring and quite photogenic couple on the cover isn’t The Gronk and his girlfriend–which would probably still not be legal since it was used without permission–but is instead an Ohio couple who’s positively mortified that their engagement photo (yes, the photo they shared with the world to announce their undying love) has been made into the laughing stock of the football/literary world.

This isn’t the first time Noonan or this book have been in trouble for the cover art. The NFL compelled the author to remove an unlicensed photo of Gronk from the original cover over copyright issues. The actual underlying cause may have been the photo that was chosen; in the picture, Gronk is wearing a uniform that prominently features a patch with the initials of the team owner’s recently deceased and widely beloved wife, a gesture the entire team took on in order to honor her memory.

Now that the book has garnered national media attention and has been the subject of widespread ridicule, the couple is suing the author for using their picture without permission. The author has replaced the cover once again with a different couple and an awkward drawing of the famous athlete’s face.

This serves as an important reminder to self-published authors about the fair use of photographs and other artwork. Ironically, the same authors who think nothing of grabbing a stock photo or a found image for the cover art would be the first in line to cry foul if their books were pirated. The real shame of the entire saga is that this is the kind of book that, despite the poor reviews that state it is poorly written and barely erotic, is exactly what self-published authors have benefited from in a big way. There is a market for every imaginable type of erotica, and it could have been smart money for Noonan if she’d continued the series in a more legally appropriate way.

“Ironically, the same authors who think nothing of grabbing a stock photo
or a found image for the cover art would be the first in line to cry
foul if their books were pirated.” I find this an odd statement. It is perfectly legal for an author to use a stock photo for their book, so long as they adhere to the licensing requirements. Stock photos should be sold by the photo company with a variety of licenses and since 90% of Indie Authors make less than $10,000 a day, it is fair to assume they are selling less than 10,000 copies (even at the lowest price of 99 cents). This is less than most advanced licensing requirements. None of this is to say I think it is wise to just buy a stock photo and slap it on your book, as that is hardly the way to create a professional cover. But still, there is a difference between unwise and wrong. What this author did was clearly wrong. Buying stock photos and abiding by proper licensing requirements is not wrong.

Lilo Abernathy

“Ironically, the same authors who think nothing of grabbing a stock photo or a found image for the cover art would be the first in line to cry foul
if their books were pirated.”

I find this an odd statement. It’s
perfectly legal for an author to use a stock photo for their book, so
long as they adhere to the licensing requirements. Stock photos should
be sold by the photo distribution companies with a variety of licenses and since 90% of
Indie Authors make less than $10,000 a year, it is fair to assume 90%
are selling less than 10,000 copies (even at the lowest price of 99
cents). This is less than most advanced licensing requirements.

None of
this is to say I think it’s wise to just buy a stock photo and slap it
on your book, as that’s hardly the way to create a professional, unique, eye-catching cover.

But still, there’s a big difference between unwise and wrong. What this
author did was clearly wrong. Or was it? Is it possible that she purchased the photo from a stock photo company and that company stole the photo off the internet? The author may have felt the photo was legit. How would an author know? I only buy my promo material from large stock companies, those with portfolios of over 1M photos and I trust that they are legit. Could some of those photos be stolen? How would I ever know? I purchase them in good faith that they are legit as the company seems large and reputable.

I’m not saying that is the case with this author. I guess we’ll find out after court.

Buying stock photos and abiding by proper
licensing requirements is not wrong.